Gnosis

A sorcerous Nonman battling a hideous Bashrag.

The Mandate sorcerer Drusas Achamian sings the Gnosis against the Ciphrang lord Zioz.

Drusas Achamian, Mandate Sorcerer, defends himself against a Scarlet Schoolman.

The Gnosis is a branch of sorcery once practiced by the Gnostic Schools of the Ancient North.

Gnostic sorcery is based on logic—it is leveraged through the use of the Abstractions, which is why Gnostic sorcerers are often referred to as Philosopher Magi. The Gnosis is the most powerful of all sorceries in the world, as it is an expression of pure logic. Unlike the Anagogic sorcery, which merely uses figurative Analogies, the Gnosis summons the meaning itself.

Skill in the Gnosis relies on intellect and purity of meaning, while the Anagogis relies on creative metaphors and the Psûkhe relies on raw emotion. Gnostic sorcery usually takes the form of geometric shapes.

The Gnosis was first developed by the Nonmen Qûya, who taught it to the early Norsirai Anagogic sorcerers during the period of cultural exchange known as the Nonman Tutelage, 555-825.

Schools

The Gnosis was originally practiced by four Schools, including the Mangaecca, the Mihtrûl, and the Sohonc. However, the Mangaecca was outlawed in 1123, and the other three schools were destroyed in the Apocalypse.

For two thousand years, the only groups which practiced the Gnosis were the remnants of the Mangaecca, now known as the Consult, and the School of Mandate, a School founded by Seswatha, the last Grandmaster of Sohonc, to prevent a Second Apocalypse. Many attempts were made by the Anagogic Schools to steal the Gnosis from the Mandate, but one of the effects of Seswatha’s Dreams, which all members of the Mandate inherited, was to render them immune to torture.

After becoming Aspect-Emperor, Anasûrimbor Kellhus established a new Gnostic School, the Swayal Compact, which was also the first School for witches.

Spells

• The Bar of Heaven
  • The sorcerer summons a massive, ruler-straight pillar of blinding light to illuminate a large area.
• The Bisecting Planes of Mirseor
  • A Cant designed to put continuous stress on an opponent's Wards.
• The Cant of Sideways Stepping
• The Cants of Torment (Agonies)
• The Cirroi Loom
• The Compass of Noshainrau
  • Raising his arm, the sorcerer lashes out with a line of light in a perfect circle, slicing and burning anything in its path.
• The Cross of Arches
• The Ellipses of Thosolankis
• The First Qûyan Fold
• The Huiritic Ring
  • An air-heating Cant that takes the form of a crimson ring surrounding the sorcerer.
• The Ishra Discursia
• The Mathesis Pin
• The Ninth Merotic
• The Noviratic Spike
  • Originally developed to smash through castle gates, the sorcerer composes a fractal formation of triangles to pound through the most formidable obstructions.
• The Odaini Concussion Cant
  • A short, simple Cant that produces a concussive shock, it is commonly used to stun or throw opponents away.
• The Ribs of Gotagga
• The Scythe of Gotagga
• The Seventh Qûyan Theorem
• The Surrillic Cant of Illumination
  • A lesser illumination Cant than the Bar of Heaven, this Cant produces a point of light that can be carried with the sorcerer.
• The Thawa Ligatures
• The Third Concentric
• The Weära Comb

Parallels

• The branches of sorcery all take their names from Greek words. “Gnosis” comes from the Greek word “Γνώσης,” meaning “Knowledge.”
• Gnosticism was an philosophic school during early Christianity. These various groups emphasized personal spiritual knowledge (gnosis) above the orthodox teachings, traditions, and authority of religious institutions. Many Gnostic texts deal not in concepts of sin and repentance, but with illusion and enlightenment.